Wartime sweethearts reunited after 70 years

American Norwood Thomas traveled to Australia to see his lost love Joyce Morris for the first time since 1945.

Wartime sweethearts Joyce Morris and Norwood Thomas finally reunited more than 70 years after their last goodbye.
(Photo: Air New Zealand/YouTube/Screenshot)

The first time in 70 years, Norwood Thomas and Joyce Morris are once again sitting side-by-side.

The pair, 93 and 88 years old respectively, met in London shortly before the 1944 invasion of Normandy. Thomas, a former U.S. military paratrooper, told reporters that above all, it was Morris' smile that took his breath away.

"This young lady had a smile that would melt you, and of course I was melted, and it very rapidly developed into something from attraction to a very strong affection," he told reporters.

Norwood Thomas holding up a photo of his former love, Joyce Morris. The pair finally reconnected this week after 70 years apart. (Photo: GoFundMe)

Despite keeping contact through letters, the relationship ended after Thomas asked Morris to move to the U.S. to marry him. Unfortunately, she somehow misunderstood and assumed he had met someone else. She stopped writing.

Both went on to marry other people. Eventually, Thomas was widowed and Morris divorced her husband of 30 years. Last year, she asked her son to track down her lost love. The two were quickly corresponding again. After word got out about their reconnection, fans of their story immediately started raising funds to make a reunion possible.

"This is about the most wonderful thing that could have happened," Thomas said after landing in Sydney on Wednesday to visit Morris. "It was a nice feeling to see this woman that I hadn't seen in 70 years."

Morris and Thomas will now spend the next two weeks together, reconnecting and (hopefully) picking up where they left off.

"We're going to have a wonderful fortnight," added Morris.

Have a tissue handy and check out their touching reunion in the video below: